Sausages are enjoyed for breakfast, lunch and dinner, with countless meal options available. They’re a cornerstone of British cooking, though there are numerous ways to cook them.
Fortunately, a butcher has suggested an alternative cooking method. They recommend using the oven as the “easiest way” to achieve evenly cooked and browned sausages with minimal fuss. It’s also best for cooking multiple sausages at once.
Butcher’s method for cooking sausages
Family-run butcher delivery service, True Bites, advocates using an oven rather than a frying pan. The butcher explained: “Oven cooking gives the sausages steady heat, helps them cook evenly, and means you do not need to keep turning them in a frying pan.
“You still get a good colour on the outside, but with less mess and less fuss. It is also a great method if you are cooking a full pack or more, because you can spread the sausages out on a tray and let the oven do the work.”
How to cook sausages in the oven
This butcher’s technique works particularly well with pork, beef, Cumberland, chipolata and traditional butcher’s sausages.
- Preheat the oven to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6.
- Arrange the sausages on a baking tray. Lining it with foil or baking paper will help keep things tidy.
- If your sausages are on the leaner side, drizzle over a little oil. Most traditional sausages contain enough fat and require very little oil.
- Place the tray in the oven for 25 to 30 minutes, turning them over halfway through to ensure even cooking.
- The sausages should be a rich golden brown on the outside and piping hot throughout. Serve immediately.
Do you need to prick sausages?
The butcher advises against pricking sausages prior to oven cooking, as leaving the skins intact helps to retain the juices, resulting in a far tastier sausage.
They said: “Pricking sausages can let the juices and fat escape, which can make them drier. A good sausage should be cooked gently enough that it does not burst badly, while still staying juicy inside.
“If a sausage does split slightly, it is not the end of the world, but I would not go out of my way to prick them before they go in the oven.”